State Police Find 454 Grams of Cocaine Hidden in Suspect's Car

A Massachusetts state trooper observed some suspicious signs after pulling over a car on Route 2 in Fitchburg late yesterday afternoon: a driver's license number that didn't match the driver, a driver who could not immediately remember the name of the car's registered owner or the full name of the girlfriend he claimed he was going to see, a loosened dashboard and glove box, and the prevalent smell of a masking agent used to hide other odors.

Troopers found another telltale sign while booking the suspect, who had been arrested for unlicensed operation, marked lanes violation, refusing to identify himself and providing a false name to police. When they tried to fingerprint him at the State Police barracks in Leominster, they determined that the man's fingertips had been altered. The suspect appeared to have used sandpaper or some other abrasive material to grind off the ridged skin on his fingertips in an apparent attempt to conceal his identity.

Meanwhile, after a State Police dog hit, multiple times, on the presence of narcotics in the man's green 2000 Buick Century, the car was towed to the barracks. There, state troopers and a Fitchburg Police detective discovered a "hide" - an illegal aftermarket alteration to a motor vehicle used to conceal and transport contraband - inside the passenger side rear seat. In the hide, police found two plastic bags, one a little bigger than a softball, the other slightly smaller. The bags contained a total of 125 small baggies containing a substance alleged to be cocaine. The total weight of the bags was 454 grams, and the suspect was additionally charged with trafficking in cocaine.

The series of events that led to the arrest began at 4:25 p.m. Tuesday, when State Trooper John McDonald observed the Buick Century swerve between marked lanes on Route 2 westbound in Fitchburg. The trooper stopped the car just before Exit 30, and, upon walking up to the car, smelled an excessive amount of a masking agent used to cover-up other smells. Upon request, the driver produced a Puerto Rico driver's license, which appeared to be brand new, with no scratches or wear marks. When Trooper McDonald ran the license number, it came back to a different person in Puerto Rico with a different name and date of birth than those listed on the license.

The name on the license provided by the driver was JONATHAN G. SALGADO-ALVAREZ. The license listed his date of birth as 6/22/72 and his address as 19 Sargent St., #3, Lawrence.

When questioned by the trooper, the driver said he was going to see his girlfriend, whose last name and address he could not remember, and said he lived in Lawrence at the same address as the car's registered owner, whose name he could not initially remember. The trooper also observed that screws in the dashboard on the passenger's side and the glove box appeared to have been loosened.

Trooper McDonald then requested a State Police K9 team, and "Ronny," a German shepherd handled by Sgt. Jerry Molet, made numerous hits for the presence of narcotics in the vehicle. Trooper Matt Aumais of the State Police Gang Unit and Fitchburg Detective James Connolly also responded to provide assistance, and the car and suspect were transported to the barracks.

The suspect, at this point identified as SALGADO-ALVAREZ, was scheduled to be arraigned today in the Fitchburg District Court.

No further information is currently available. Please do not contact the barracks directly.